Be Wise as Serpents and Innocent as Doves - Revisit

I wrote a blog on this theme on July 14, 2017 - almost exactly the same day last year - after reading the exact scripture passage (Matthew 10:16-23). It was a good read but how have I changed in the past year? In what ways did reading and blogging God's Word change me? There had been many challenges coming from the "wolves" (Matthew 10:16) - the one that stands out is the matter related to "Conscience Protection", especially in Ontario. Praise God, one of the signs of victory was the change of government (the incumbent Liberal government was so defeated that it lost its official party status) and the new Progressive Conservative government had previously promised to write a Conscience Protection clause in the Medical Assistance in Dying (MAiD) Bill. As it stands, health care providers who object to be involved in killing their patients can be prosecuted by their professional college, e.g. if physicians don't make an effective referral for the patients who want to obtain assisted suicide; or nurses who refuse to be part of the killing process.

I had thought that the liturgical calendar attempts to read through the entire bible every 3 years. So why is this scripture passage repeated even within a year? Is it because the message is very important for Christians - are we not all called to take part in the "Great Commission" (Matthew 28:16-20) ? As a recent revert to Catholicism am I not encouraged to take part in the "New Evangelism"? It is interesting that the activists for Secularism is often calling religious people "wolves"! I think they are wolves in sheep clothing!

So Jesus is preparing us for the Great Commission. It is important to understand why He uses serpents and doves for object lessons. I have found the explanation given by GotQuestions.org helpful. I copied a few paragraphs here to serve a reminder for me:

"The serpent simile stands in Jesus’ dialogue without bringing forward any of the serpent’s pejoratives. It is a basic understanding in language that, when a speaker creates a simile, he is not necessarily invoking the entire potential of the words he has chosen—nor is he invoking the entire history and tenor of the linguistic vehicle. Rather, the speaker is defining a fresh relationship between the two things. A quick look at Matthew 10:16 shows that Jesus was invoking only the positive aspects of the serpent. There is no hint of His unloading Edenic baggage upon His disciples. He simply tells them to be wise (and innocent) as they represented Him.

When Jesus told the Twelve to be as wise as serpents and harmless as doves, He laid down a general principle about the technique of kingdom work. As we take the gospel to a hostile world, we must be wise (avoiding the snares set for us), and we must be innocent (serving the Lord blamelessly). Jesus was not suggesting that we stoop to deception but that we should model some of the serpent’s famous shrewdness in a positive way. Wisdom does not equal dishonesty, and innocence does not equal gullibility."

"In His more typical moments, Jesus showed that He was as wise as a serpent in the way He taught. He knew enough to discern the differences in His audiences (a critical skill), He used the story-telling technique to both feed and weed (Matthew 13:10–13), and He refused to be caught in the many traps that His enemies laid for Him (Mark 8:11; 10:2; 12:13).

Jesus showed that He was as harmless as a dove in every circumstance. He lived a pure and holy life (Hebrews 4:15), He acted in compassion (Matthew 9:36), and He challenged anyone to find fault in Him (John 8:46; 18:23). Three times, Pilate judged Jesus to be an innocent man (John 18:38; 19:4, 6)."

"In Matthew 10:16, Jesus taught us how to optimise our gospel-spreading opportunities. Successful Christian living requires that we strike the optimal balance between the dove and the serpent. We should strive to be gentle without being pushovers, and we must be sacrificial without being taken advantage of. We are aware of the unscrupulous tactics used by the enemy, but we take the high road. Peter admonishes us, “Live such good lives among the pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us” (1 Peter 2:12)."

I was quite involved with the Conscience Protection campaign last year - helping my wife making presentations in churches, marching to Queen's Park, and writing to MPP's etc. I am learning from many other members of the Body of Christ and supporting their actions. I pray that Jesus' lesson on being a better serpent and a better dove will both increase my virtues and avoid vices. 

I desire mercy, not sacrifice

Jesus made this reference from Hosea 6:6 in two places:

Matthew 9:13: But go and learn what this means: ‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice.’ For I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.”

Matthew 12:7:  If you had known what these words mean, ‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice,’ you would not have condemned the innocent.


The context of the first reference was the calling of the Gospel writer Matthew himself (Matthew 9:9-13). Notice the reaction of the Pharisees when Jesus hung out (and presumably ate) with the "sinners". Jesus responded by telling them to "learn" the meaning of Hosea 6:6 (which should be quite familiar with the Pharisees). Jesus then claimed: "For I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.”

The context of the second reference was again directed to the Pharisees who accused Jesus' disciples for doing something unlawful on the Sabbath (Matthew 12:1-8). Jesus then made this claim: "For the Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath.”.

I have been reading from the book of Amos these last many days. In today's passages (Amos 8:4-6, 9-12) the first passage (8:4-6) is an accusation to those (who are God's people!) "who trample the needy and do away with the poor of the land" and the second passage (9-12) is God's severe response to them. These are not easy words to hear. Although I don't feel I belong to those who are being accused, there is still a lesson to be learned here. How do I view the poor? And what should be my attitude when I serve the poor?

In light of my recent bike accident (I was on my way to BBQ for the homeless people in a downtown church - my regular Friday volunteering work), I am becoming more aware of the 200-300 faces I serve. I often had these thoughts - "where do they get the money for all the tattoos on their bodies?"; "why do they own dogs when they can't even feed themselves?"; "if only they don't spend money on cigarettes they maybe able to feed themselves"; "they take welfare cheques and don't bother to work". What is the point of sacrificing my time for them?

Today Jesus is telling me to learn the meaning of this: "I desire mercy, not sacrifice"!
Oh how I desire to be like Jesus, whose love for the poor and sinners is so perfect. "But God proves his love for us in that while we still were sinners Christ died for us. " (Romans 5:8)